Air restrictor

An air restrictor, commonly called an AR, is one of a blaster's internal components. It is a term used by Nerfers in the modification community.

Details

Air restrictors are used to represent pieces inside of a Nerf blaster that cut off air flow when the dart is not all the way back in the barrel, to prevent the plunger system from becoming damaged when dry fired. They are normally located in the back the blaster's barrel and are often attached to the dart post. Modders usually remove these during blaster modification because doing so increases the range of most blasters. The removal of these pieces allows for maximum potential and no air flow restrictions to be achieved. Some newer blasters, such as the Strongarm, are known to be less powerful with their air restrictors removed, but the reason for this is not really understood.

Most blasters require the restrictor to be drilled out with power tools. With some revolver-type blasters such as the Maverick REV-6 or the Hyperfire, the air restrictors can be easily removed by simply unscrewing the cylinder and pulling them out.

Risks

There is a risk that the blaster may become damaged after frequent use of or dry firing without an air restrictor, as there is no mediator between the plunger and the bolt. To compensate for this, some modders pad the head of their plunger with soft foam to increase the lifespan of their blaster's internals. Additionally, some users reinforce their plungers, or buy entirely new ones made out of aluminium to reduce this problem.

Some modern blasters such as the Triad EX-3 and Rough Cut 2x4 also require air restrictors in order to operate, so removing the air restrictors in these blasters could have a negative effect on their performance, or cause it to stop working entirely.